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A red rag to a bull?



 
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A red rag to a bull? #1 (permalink) Mon Nov 01, 2004 13:59 pm   A red rag to a bull?
 

Test No. incompl/inter-2 "Like a red rag", question 1

Don't talk to him about politics because it's like a ......... rag to a bull.

(a) blue
(b) white
(c) red
(d) black

Test No. incompl/inter-2 "Like a red rag", answer 1

Don't talk to him about politics because it's like a red rag to a bull.

Correct answer: (c) red

Your answer was: incorrect
Don't talk to him about politics because it's like a blue rag to a bull.
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why?

Managa
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Red rags and toreros #2 (permalink) Mon Nov 01, 2004 16:33 pm   Red rags and toreros
 

Because the colour red is thought to infuriate bulls. Have you ever seen a Torero - a Spanish bullfighter? Do you remember what he was holding in this hands? Yes, it was a red rag!
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Bulls are colour blind #3 (permalink) Tue Apr 05, 2005 13:06 pm   Bulls are colour blind
 

The phrase Red rag to a bull, comes from the bullfights, which use either a red rag, or a cloth lined with red. The colour is insignificant to the bull.
They attack because they feel threatened, not because of the colour of the cloth, bulls see, according to scientists in monochrome.
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A red rag to a bull? #4 (permalink) Wed Dec 10, 2008 18:19 pm   A red rag to a bull?
 

Hi Torsten,

Does it mean to infuriate him? (..............red rag to a bull)

Regards,
Lee
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A red rag to a bull? #5 (permalink) Wed Dec 10, 2008 20:37 pm   A red rag to a bull?
 

Hi Lee,

Yes, that's avery good choice to explain the idiom.

Alan
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A red rag to a bull? #6 (permalink) Wed Dec 31, 2008 17:01 pm   A red rag to a bull?
 

hi,
if a statement or an action is like a red rag to a bull, it makes someone very angry!
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